Although this transitition is tough, you CAN do thisand are not doing it alone. Give yourself a date thatyou will tell yourself o.k donna let's not only makethe best of this but turn this into God's blessing. Check out this thought from the hill from dec. I wentback in my daily thoughts to find something that couldbe of inspiration to you. hugs and kisses,Monika--- Daily Thoughts From the Hill wrote:> From: "Daily Thoughts From the Hill"> > To: > Subject: GOD SEES ME THROUGH> Date: Sat, 9 Dec 2006 00:01:06 -0500> > Saturday December 9, 2006> > > > GOD SEES ME THROUGH> > > > When life appears to be out of control and> > friends appear few, I rely on God to see me through.> > When the medicine no longer works and bills are> > overdue, I rely on God to see me through. When my> > children won't behave and my boss is on a tirade, I> > rely on God to see me through. When my heart is> > heavy from loss and depression has my voice, I rely> > on God to see me through. When the one I love has> > walked out the door and when I feel I can take no> more,> > I rely on God to see me through. When my heart is> > aching and I don't know what to do, God sees me> > through.> > > > I am glad to know that no matter what> > happens in my life God is an abiding presence that> will> > see me through. I never face a burden or a challenge> > alone. God sees me through. I rest in God and God> > brings quietness to my soul. I consciously reconnect> > to the peace which is God and God's abiding presence> > sees me through. Thanks, God. And so it is.> > > > "Do not worry over things, but always by prayer> > and supplication with thanksgiving let your> > requests be made known to God."> > Philippians 4:6 (Lamsa's Aramaic Translation)> > > > Daily Thoughts from the Hill> > Hillside Chapel & Truth Center, Inc.> > <http://www.hillsidechapel.org/>> http://www.hillsidechapel.org/> >

Home Away From Home: The Weekend With My Family

I spent the entire weekend meeting my aunts, uncles and cousins-- all of whom I met for the first time this weekend and I experienced pure unadulterated joy. During this weekend, I also came to understand exactly why I am in London. I will share more about this revelation when I have the emotional and spiritual energy to write it all down. I hope that you enjoy the photos and yes. . . we are the United Nations (literally).

Sightseeing Around London

London is filled with many alleyways. The buildings along each alley are so beautiful that you cannot help but walk down them. The architecture of each building is distinct and timeless. Along the alleyways, you will find many surprising treats like quaint coffee shops, restaurants, bar and cute boutiques.

Like NY, in London you will find people with many "gifts" and "ideas" about how to recreate themselves. To the left is "RAMBO-TTLE VIII." His costume is made out of plastic water bottles. He even had a gun made of watter bottles.

The dude playing the guitar makes weird sounds with his mouth. He sounded like chirping birds. It was quite odd.

The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (the House of Lords and the House of Commons) meet to conduct their business. The oldest part of the Palace still in existence, Westminster Hall, dates from 1097. The palace originally served as a royal residence but no monarch has lived in it since the 16th century. Most of the present structure dates from the 19th century, when the Palace was rebuilt after it was almost entirely destroyed by a fire in 1834. The House of Commons section was rebuilt in the 1940s, having been bombed in WWII. The building is an example of Gothic revival. One of the Palace's most famous features is the clock tower, a tourist attraction that houses the famous bell Big Ben.

The Tube, London's train system. It is the oldest underground transportation system in the world.
The "Eye of London" is a ferris wheel which acts as an observation desk. You can see all of London while riding this 30 minute wheel. To the far right is a picture of the Eye of London during the day time and to the left is a photo of the Eye of London from my Aunt's terrace.

English Dictionary for Americas & other notable information - 4th Installment

1. Mum = mom (BTW, today, March 18th is mother's day. Fortunately for my mother, she will be getting two Mother's Day gifts. One in honour (that's the way one spells "honor" in the UK) of Mum's Day in the UK and another in honor of Mother's Day in the states (I think that's sometime in May)

2. "Darling" is a very common word here. "Darling how are you?" "Darling, it's good to see you." Darling, come sit here with me."

3. Motorway = highway or freeway.

4. You must kiss people on both sides of the cheek. Outside of the work place, kissing on both sides of the cheek is a standard greeting.

5. Pissed = drunk (not angry)

6. 70 miles an hour is the speed limit for driving. (?!?!?)

Random. Random. Random

I had the MOST amazing day today. I broke down and cried a few times (yall know I am always crying anyway). I met 3 cousins. Tomorrow I meet 10 more!!!!!! I expect that I will be even more emotional. I am not sure how I will express what I am feeling on my blog. I don't think its possible to capture it in words. God is truly truly truly truly amazing. In hanging out with one of my aunts, I had a peep into why I am here. We have all heard people say this before but today it really sunk in--What God is doing in your life really has nothing to do with you. What God is doing in your life has NOTHING to do with you but it has everything to do with everyone around you. You are the vessel which has been chosen to get his work done. If we could just get a clue. . .if we could just yield to what he is doing through you . . . we will see a manifestation of God's work being done.

THE WORD OF THE DAY--- LOOK AT ALL AREAS OF YOUR LIFE---WHAT IS IT THAT YOU FEAR THE MOST?????? Please take a few moments to write down your fears.

MY REVELATION FOR TODAY IS "GOD HAS ALREADY MADE PROVISION FOR THE THINGS THAT YOU FEAR THE MOST!!!!"

PS The added bonus of this evening. . . is that I had the chance to ride in a convertible porche. All of my cousins have porches. Even the ones younger than me. I am not really into cars but hmmm gotta figure out what they are doing for a living so that I can do the same thing.

Random Revelation: "Dont' Miss the Move"

One of my biggest revelations while in London is that God cannot bless you until you are fully present in where He has placed you. If you are busy looking at what you left (whether it is a place, a mate, a previous lifestyle that you had etc. . . or in my case NY) you will miss what He is doing in your life currently. We spend so much time looking back at what we had or looking to the future to what we want (house, man, car, money, children) that we are missing the move of God as he is working here and now.

Paul says in Phil 4:11 "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13I can do everything through him who gives me strength."

I believe that being fully present is part of the "secret" that Paul is talking about. It is the conscious effort that one must make to be fully present. It is only when you are fully present that you can be in a place of contentment in "whatever circumstance." When you are fully present you recognize that where you are right now is where you are supposed to be. If you can get this, you will stop looking back and stop looking so far in the future so that you can experience God's move in your life now. And ony then can you really understand the concept of "doing everything through Him who gives me strength."

Don't miss the move (meaning the move of God). Practice being fully present.

The above is a photo of a beautiful church that I saw in Kennington, London as I was making my way to church last sunday.

Second Week in Review

Overall, I had a good week. I worked tremendously hard this week. I came home at 3am almost every day and slept like a baby for about 4 hours before having to get up and do it all over again. This week, I was so exhausted that the 20 extra large trucks parked outside of my window unloading meat, no longer disturbed me at night.

Throughout the week, my colleagues continued to stop by my office and introduce themselves to me. One young woman that I had met last week stopped by my office and gave me a copy of "Time Out London" that she had picked up for me. She shared that the particular issue of Time Out- London featured various arts related events throughout London that she thought I would be interested in and wanted me to have a copy. Her thoughtfulness deeply warmed my heart and it reminded me that people are inherently good and kind. It's this thoughtfulness that has helped my transition into living in London. I am thankful for every person that God has put in my path that makes each day just a little bit easier.

In spite of my incredibly busy week at work, I was determined to make the best of the weekend even though my body wanted nothing more than to sleep the entire weekend away.

I am normally not a morning person but as my mother has noted on more than one occasion, if getting up involves dance, church or liturgical, it doesn't take much to get me out of the bed in the morning. So on Saturday, I woke up at 8am (this is crazy early for me even on a work day) excited about the activities that I had planned for the day. My first stop was at Pineapple Dance Studio. I had taken a "Contemporary" dance class last week which was a lot of fun so I was looking forward to taking the "Pure Technique" class. Just as I imagined, I had a great time. It was difficult but I enjoyed myself tremendously even though every single movement killed me. That class woke up muscles that I didn't even know existed. Following this class, I took a "Commercial Jazz" class. I really wasnt sure what "Commercial Jazz" meant but I was looking foward to it. The class wasn't really my style and I won't be taking that class again yet I enjoyed myself and met some cool people while there. Pineapple doesn't make up for how much I miss BDC and liturgical but they will suffice for now and I look forward to going weekly.

After two classes at Pineapple, I decided to travel to the Portobello Market in Notting Hill (for you movie buffs, yes this is the area that Notting Hill with Hugh Grant was filmed). Notting Hill is known as one of the most affluent areas in London. The neighborhood is peppered with huge Victorian homes and going straight through the neighborhood is the Portobello Market. I imagined that Portobello Market would be similar to the street fairs that one would find throughout Manhattan during the summer. As a young child, my mother and I would be sure to hit every single street fair in the city. What I did not know about Portobello Market was that it spanned for 30 blocks-- which my feet were not prepared for. As I walked through the market, I noticed that you could literally find any item that you could ever imagine. There were antiques, jewelery, clothes, bags, furs (yes, furs), meat, art, fruits, vegetables, records (yes, records), furniture, fake Gucci bags and everything else that you could imagine. Surrounding the market were cute little cafes, restaurants and chic boutiques. I also saw several mini casinos on the strip.

I had a wonderful time walking through Portobello Market. Over the last week or so, it has become apparent that the moment I open my mouth, it is like an open invitation for conversation for anyone within earshot. People often look twice when they hear my "accent" (never knew I had an accent until I got here) and then the questions begin: Where are you from? What are you doing here? How long have you been here? What is life like in New York? How do you like London? What do you do for a living? Why are you doing it in London?Where do you live?. . . etc. etc. etc. Let's just say that my "accent" has made it very easy to meet people. Fortunately, I consider myself to be a friendly person (on most days) and I enjoy many of these conversation as it presents an opportunity to learn a little more about life in London.

After leaving the market, I thought about going to movies but the 90 hour work week, followed by the two rigorous dance classes and the 30 block walk through the Portobello Market left me with zero energy so I returned home in order to prepare for church on Sunday.

To round up the weekend, on Sunday, I had a wonder time at Rauch Ministries. In the evening, I spoke to my favorite uncle, my mom and then my dearest friend Nikki. All in all, I had a wonderful weekend.

Pictures (1) me looking and feeling wrecked after classes at Pineapple, (2) Portobello Market which extends for several blocks, (3) photos of the Victorian homes which look alot like brownstone which I love (cost: about 2 million pounds = 4 million dollars). I have always been enthralled by brownstones and Victorian homes so I took a few pictures.

English Dictionary for Americas - 3rd Installment

1. No one "loves" "likes" or "enjoys" anything. Every has a "fancy." I "fancy" sweet tea. I "fancy" shopping at Nottting Hill. I "fancy" going to the cinema.

2. No one "hates" a thing. But everyone has a bloody. I "bloody" standing on the crowded tube (see previous post for meaning of "tube").

3. "cents" = "pence"

4. "restroom" or "bathroom" = "toilet". No one knows what the heck I am talking about when I ask where the "restroom" is located.

5. "#" (we know this as the "pound" sign) = this symbol is known as "hash."

6. The Brits drive on the wrong side of the road. In the states, when driving on a two way street, one always drives to the right side. Here, everyone drives on the left side. Day after day, I nearly get hit by a car because I am constantly looking at the incorrect direction to see if a car is coming. And whenever you are looking for a car in the wrong direction, one is clearly *never* there. There have been a few close calls. In addition to driving on the opposite side of the road, the driver's seat is located in what we know to be the passenger's seat. It is totally weird and I cannot wrap my mind around this. Apparently, only three other countries drive like this-- South Africa is one but I cant remember the other two. I guess, it's inappropriate to say that "they drive on the wrong side of the street," who is to say which side is the correct one to drive on? It's the old "does the toilete seat belong up or down" argument.

7. You are allowed to bring your dogs on the bus. I am not talking about a small dog that you can place in a bag but I am talking about a D.O.G. Today, while on my way to church, this dude took his two very large pit bulls on the bus and no one batted an eye. I am sorry but I was floored. I am sorry but the bus was crowded and as far as I was concerned there was no room for two large pit bulls. . . .

8. Public "toilets" can be found throughout the streets. You have to pay to use them and they look pretty clean. (Sidebar-- I couldn't bring myself to use one but I did peaked in one to see what it looks like).

Enter His Gates With Thanksgiving: First Sunday in London

"I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart, I will enter his courts with praise. I will say this is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice for He has made me glad. He has made me glad. He has made me glad. I will rejoice for he has made me glad, glad, glad."

At the suggestion of several friends from my home church, the Greater Allen Cathderal (GAC), I visited Rauch Ministries in Brixton, London. While I had never heard of the church nor its Pastor, Bishop John Francis and Co-Pastor, Rev. Penny Francis, the recommendation came from three people that I not only respect but they are serious about their relationship with God. I found it no coincidence that each person suggested Rauch Ministries on different occasions.

Being the historian that I am, I immediately began doing research about Brixton, the area that the Rauch Ministries is located. I learned that the community is predominated by poor and working class black people. As with many inner cities with a certain socio-economic framework, Brixton is known for its gun and drug trafficing, crime is very high and there is a long standing tension between the community and the police. Similiar to BedStuy and Harlem, Brixton is also expericing gentrification and current residents are slowing being displaced by the middle class and upper class.

Several people looked at me with concern when I told them that I was going "to attend a church in Brixton." I, however, was not afraid. I knew that I had to exercise the same wisdom that I would while walking the streets of the Bronx, Brooklyn and my old stomping ground Harlem. I was actually looking forwarding to seeing where the "folk" live as well as picking up some hair care products which I so desperately need (smile).

After waking up an hour late, taking one of the two trains that I needed in the wrong direction, missing my stop on the bus and getting caught in a sudden down pour of rain (with no umbrella), I finally arrived to Brixton. It had the look and feel of any inner city in the states. It was quite early in the morning and the streets were not populated but I knew that I was in the "hood" when I saw Kennedy Fried Chicken (who knew they were international).

On my walk towards the church (after missing my bus stop), I stumbled upon two yellow signs. One sign read "They Want Your Pod" and just down the block another said "Beware of theives and pickpockets." I did a quick survey to see what was going on around me yet and still, I was not afraid. Even though the signs did not "scare" me, I thought it best that I stop taking pictures like a mad woman (yall know how I do) and put away the digital camera so that I would blend in just a little bit more.

After getting lost (again), I finally found Rauch Ministries. Because Bishop Francis is featured on TBN, I expected to see a larger ornate building no different from GAC or New Birth which is why I walked by the church a few times. Even though the church building was simple and rather inconspicuous, what was going one inside of the church was truly a mighty move of God. Upon entering, I heard the choir singing a song that I would normally hear at GAC and I felt at peace. I was so much at peace that I immediately started crying like I always do when I am in the unadulterated presence of God and his people.

The service was truly a blessing. It was just what I need after spending a week in a country that was not my own. Throughout the last week, my mind knew that God was with me but during today's service my entire being felt it. The service was so good and the presence of God was so strong that I ended up staying for two services. The praise and worship was amazing (they even had liturgical dancers ministering during praise and worship) and the Word was powerful. It is truly a "teaching" church. They break down the history, context, places, time periods, and the meanining of names and words in various translation, etc. You know the history buff in me gets excited about all this information.

Going to church, fellowshipping with other Christians, learning more about God and being in his presence are truly important to me. Life is SO hard that I have no idea how people get through life without a relationship with God and a church home that provides encouragement and support. I have no doubt in my mind that GAC has helped me to become successful in various facets of my life. While there is no church like your home church, I look forward to attending Rauch Ministries while I am in London. Getting there was a sacrifice but what I gained during service will last a life time.

Being at Rauch was bitter sweet. While I was thankful that God had led me there (through my friends), I was also reminded how much I totally miss GAC. I miss my church mothers who give me hugs and kisses and comforting words of encouragement. I miss the voice of a choir that sounds like angels to my ears. I miss ministering with the dance ministry and being ministered to by them. I miss the revelation from the pastor and the co-pastor. Yet . . . I know that there is an added layer that I am suppose to get from a church in London and I am looking forward to allowing God to add this layer to the foundation that GAC has given me.

Below is an excerpt from today's sermon. It does not even touch a small portion of the revelation that I received during today's service, however I pray that it blesses you as it has blessed me:

"The Circuit Breaker"

Micah 2:3-13

God intends to break through you and break [things] out of you. God made a covenant with the seed of Abraham that must come to pass. There was a covenant made about you that must come to pass. There was a promise that was made about you that must come to pass. God is in covenant with His Word and this Word concerns you. The desire to be in right standing with God means the willingness to be subject to His judgment. When you said "Abba, My father" when you first gave your life to Christ this mere statement gave Him the authority and the right to judge and correct and chastise you. God is a God of balance. Though His judgment comes by force, His blessings are also prolific. He balances love with judgment and correction with blessings. Watch out for leaders whose wrath bring you down yet fail to lift you up as they are not leading the way God would have them to lead. God is a God who does get angry with you yet His anger has the ability to dissipate instantaneously. This is why there is "no one like God." No human being has the ability to dissipate instantaneously the anger over what you have done, the way that God has. God's entire purpose is that he wants you back. People don't want you back. If you are here, you are here if you are not, you are not. If you are not here, they think "more space for me." But God, wants you back!

You have been in negotiation with sin for too long and sin will pay you back. God will bring down your economy because you have made an agreement with sin. Before you receive a blessing, God is going to disrupt all that is in your like that is not like him -- people, places and things. God is going to break down every spirit of influence in your life that is not like him. He is destroying all that you have aligned yourself with that is contaminating you. He has had people speak to you time and time again about the same things and it's to the point where you are acting like the Word does not apply to you. He refuses to bless you as long as you have so much foolishness going on in your life. He needs to distinguish himself from the witchcraft that is going on in your life. He is not impressed by all of the shouting that you do in church. Half of y'all are shouting because you are trying to get attention. The other half shouts because they are pretending to be in agreement with the Word even though the Word is not reflective in their life. The Bible says "let the priest and the minister weap, wail and howl." That's not what's going on in church because y'all are looking to cute when you are supposed to be worshiping him. You are too worried about your outfit, when you are supposed to be worship him. You are too worried about your hair when you are supposed to be worshipping him.

First comes Judgment, then Repentance, then the Blessing. Most of y'all are not going to make it because you refuse to repent. You want to shout over the blessing but not the judgement and definitely not the repentance. And this is the problem with the 21st century teaching. Learn to accept the correction, learn to repent and you will receive your blessing.

Thanks for reading this. If I have time, I will break down the "circuit breaker" concept. Let's just say that I will never look at one of those things the same way.

My First Work Week

I have now concluded my first week at work. The week was very busy. Just because I am in the London office does not mean that I will be working any less hours. I am determined to become as efficient as possible because it would be a shame to look back at my experience here and realize that I spent 80 hours a week working, the weekend sleeping and no knowledge of what it's like to live in London.

So far everyone at the firm is really nice. In NY we have about 400 lawyers and in the UK office, there are about 100 lawyers so it's definitely a smaller office. One of my friends/colleagues in the NY office is actually a permanent lawyer in the London office but she is doing a two year stint in NY. Before my arrival, she emailed all of her friends in the UK office and told them that I was coming. Throughout the week, they each stopped by to introduce themselves to me. It definitely made me feel comfortable to know that there are folks that I can call with questions like-- where is the bathroom? where can I buy lunch? how do I order dinner? and how do I order a taxi to get home at night? and most importantly, where are the best clothing and shoe stores?

On my first day, one of the partners took me out to lunch. I was a little nervous because even though I have been at the firm for 6 years, it can be nerve racking to have one on one interactions with partners. As you know, first impression are lasting impressions. He took me to a Japanese restaurant not too far from the firm. He turned out to be such a wonderful guy and I had a great time talking to him over lunch. After lunch, he took me on a tour of the neighborhood so that I would know how to find the closest tube (that's what the train station is called in London), pharmacy and various places to have lunch etc. He IS a partner which means he has a tremendous amount of work to do so I appreciated the time that he spent with me over lunch as well as the tour of the neighborhood. I am always grateful when people go out their way to do things for me. We live in a survival of fittest world so I sincerely appreciate it when people do things for me.

If you know me personally you may find this hard to believe but at work, I am fairly quiet and I tend to keep to myself (I know, you cannot imagine this side of me). I am nice but my MO is to come in, do my work and go home. So the fact that I am in a new office environment where I do not know many people is fine yet I do appreciate that people are going out of their way to make me feel comfortable.

I also met a guy (also a lawyer) at my firm who is a friend of a friend of one of my sorority sisters. They all went to Yale undergrad together and he is an Alpha. He stopped by to introduce himself to me and he is a really nice guy. As it is with black folk, there are only three (maybe two) degrees of separation. So, it turns that we know a few people in common and because we have the Greek thing in common we connected and I felt very comfortable chatting with him. I am thankful that I have yet another person to chat with about whatever I need to know about London.

Even though it was my *first* week at work, there was no slow transition. I am on about four deals (which is alot) and I was totally swamped. I left almost every night at 10pm or 11pm, and since I am having trouble sleeping at night, I did not get to sleep every night until about 3am. On Thursday, I pulled one of those crazy all nighter which I sometimes do in the NY office. I arrived to work on Thursday at 10am in the morning and left on Friday evening at 5pm in the evening. There was no sleep or rest involved. Needless to say, on Friday I was sleep walking. The body was not made to work 31 hours straight-- perhaps one day I will get a clue. My friend at work once described me as "someone who always has to push herself to the edge." This description frightened me and I will continue to work on work-life balance. Although I also note that I "push myself to the edge" in all aspects of my life. This is yet another trait that I will put on my list of things to ponder and rectify while I am out here.

While in London, I will be working on deals that are very different from the ones that I have been working on in the states. I expect that it is going to be a major intellectual challenge but I am looking forward to learning something different. I am trusting that God will give me the wherewith all to learn as quickly and painlessly as possible. I really like the team that I am working with. The partner and the senior lawyers are not only nice but they are brilliant. I pray that things continue to go as well over the next three months (without the all nighters of course). If I begin to feel frustrated, I will remember what the ol' church folk say, "God wouldn't bring you this far to leave you."

Thankfully, I had the opportunity to speak to at least four of my friends this weekend. Of course, I continue to speak to my mother daily except that instead of speaking four times a day, we speak once a day. It really warms my heart to hear their voices. It reminds me that even though there are times that I may feel lonely, I am not alone because I have my mom and my friends who support me from afar and a God who is watching over me.

Additional Learnings

1. Everyone says "cheers."

2. Throughout the week, I kept seeing red double deck buses and thought "wow, they sure have a ton of sightseeing buses in London." Today, I learned that these are not tourist buses but actually regular transportation buses.

3. I am not sure if the UK is trying to save water or what but the water in the toilet bowl does not fill up to midway in the toilet, intsead it fills to the very bottom of the toilet bowl. This drives me nuts.

4. "Black American Coffee" is what we know as black coffee.

5. "White American Coffee" is a latte.

6. Your food and/or drinks cost more if you are going to eat it in the restaurant (or coffee shop or deli, etc) than if you take away (see previous post about what "take away" means).